I must admit to not being a fan of the Christmas television advert from John Lewis this year. I haven’t got anything against cute dragons and ginger haired children. What I have taken issue with, is the tagline behind the campaign.

“Show them how much you care”. It feels to be one step away from a spoilt teenager, shouting abuse at his parents for not buying him a £500 iPad for Christmas – “if you loved me, you’d get me one!”.

Admittedly, the advert isn’t as harsh as your typical adolescent, stereotyped by Harry Enfield; but the message it is clearly telling us, is damning – if we wish to show love for our family and friends, the best way to do so is to spend money, and lots of it. Presumably only at John Lewis or Waitrose. Buying gifts from anywhere else is as mean and unfestive as slamming your front door in the face of five-year-old carol singers and eating your kids’ selection boxes.

The advert feels as if it must be a real kick in the teeth for many parents, who dedicate their lives to their children, every day of the year. Many will no doubt feel under even more pressure than normal to spend money they don’t have, because failure to do so clearly means that they don’t care enough for their kids. Quick! Somebody call social services – Timmy’s mum and dad only bought him a £100 Fire Tablet. No iPad? That’s child abuse at its worse.

I would like to think that parents – and anyone for that matter – will realise that it is possible to show someone how much you care, by hugging them (free), telling them that you love them (free), or simply by spending time together (free).

If you think those suggestions are crap, then you can always spend half a grand on a tablet.